With Bud's Family at Cornell

We are very close to our families. Bud grew up with two sisters and a brother, and Brenda with three brothers. We enjoy spending time with them, their spouses and children, and our parents, most of whom live close by. We have lots of family traditions. At Christmas time, we always go out to dinner together with the entire clan at a restaurant the day after Christmas. The only official rule is that it has to be someplace different from every other year. Bud is usually responsible for picking the restaurant, and since it needs to be a place we haven't been, that isn't too far away, that can accommodate a large crowd, that isn't too expensive, where everyone can find something they like, and that doesn't mind children, sometimes we have to get pretty creative! We both enjoy lots of different kinds of food - our current favorite restaurants are Indian and Greek, but we also really enjoy seafood, Mexican, Thai, and Japanese food. Another regular tradition is to take family vacations together with our extended family. We often rent a house at the beach, but we have also been on a couple of wonderful family cruises to the Bahamas and Europe. Although we keep in touch with e-mail and phone calls, we find that these longer periods of time when we are living together really cement our relationship and keep us close to one another.

Brenda's Family Dines Out

Our whole extended family is very excited about us adopting, and is looking forward to having a new member of the family to spoil.

Our Home

We live in a wonderful place. Our house is big enough for everyone to have space to spread out. When the baby is first born he or she will be in our bedroom, but when they get older will have their very own bedroom, very close to ours, decorated with natural sunlight from skylights. Our neighborhood is a mix of homes, small farms, and horseback riding stables; a place where the neighbors all know each other and keep an eye out for each other. All the neighbors have children of varying ages. It's a great place for kids and animals to run around in a safe environment - there are woods nearby, a creek to explore, and lots of playmates around the corner.

View of Nearby Chesapeake Bay

In springtime, we pick fresh strawberries, and in winter, we cut down our own Christmas tree. We are also only five miles from the Chesapeake Bay, so we often take our bikes and ride over to watch the sailboats, walk on the boardwalk and indulge in a funnel cake. For the 4th of July, we drive Bud's restored antique car over to one of the small towns near us and ride in the town parade, and then stay to watch fireworks light up the Bay. The Washington DC area is a very racially and culturally diverse community, and is a place where people from all over the world have settled down. Besides all the great museums like the Smithsonian, it's also a great place to work, with lots of job opportunities. Although we love to travel, we are always very happy to come home.